The other day, my daughter and her husband asked me to go with them to look for new car. They had narrowed their choice to a couple of vehicles. For over a month they had researched all the different types of SUV’s and had settled on a particular model, year, and mileage range. They decided that a low mileage used car would fit their needs. They had saved a down payment, been to their credit union and been pre-approved, and now they were ready to pull the trigger. If you were going to do this deal by the book, they did it. However, there was one thing that puzzled me. Why was I there? They really didn’t need me because they had already done everything to perfection.

When it came down to the final price, my son-in-law turned to me and asked: “Do you think we’re getting a good deal?” Now my role was becoming crystal clear. All they needed was a little assurance that they had done a good job. I told him: “Tell them to throw in a bug guard and all weather floor mats and they got a deal!”

You see, I know you’ll find this hard to believe because I’m such a go along to get along, non-opinionated type of individual.

October 30

Sometimes in life it helps to get a little perspective on your current situation. There’s a big difference in a problem and an inconvenience. Let me give you an example to explain my point. In August, 2005, Hurricane Katrina, a category five storm slammed the gulf coast of Mississippi and New Orleans leaving thousands among thousands homeless. At First Baptist Church, Natchez, where I served as pastor, we housed over 300 individuals when our family life center became a Red Cross shelter. These individuals had lost everything. In other words, they were facing a real problem.

At the same time, due to the high winds, our house was without electricity. We were forced to move in with one of our church members. What normally would have been viewed as a problem, was now understood as a minor inconvenience. There’s a huge difference in losing your home and losing your electricity.

The same in true in our own lives. A minor inconvenience comes our way and we feel like we’ve been hit by a major hurricane, when in reality, we haven’t even gone through a thunderstorm. Sometimes a little perspective will help us understand we don’t have it quite so bad. If you’re throwing a temper tantrum over a small issue, give me a call one day and accompany me to one of our hospitals. You’ll see pretty quickly you don’t have it quite so bad. Godspeed my friends.